Taking a look at the end of year Rule 5 Draft situation, the team has 40 on the 40-man roster today. They also have Zack Thompson on the 60-day IL that will be added back. They have Mikolas coming off, so ultimately, that leaves them flat right at 40 members.
No one knows what Chaim Bloom will do when it comes to the trade front or on who he values most. But I’d like to take some quick educated guesses based on who needs to be protected and who can be let go.
Back on Aug 4, I laid out the whole list of names that should be considered. The order has changed some given that a trio were added already (Crooks, Prieto, and Church) and Mautz and Hansen played very well down the stretch. I’m going to just list here who I think needs to be protected and then a several others worth considering, but not go all the way to the maybe, possibly will be picked guys:
1. Baez
2. Bernal
3. Hjerpe
4. Mautz
I think these 4 are surefire adds. Yes, Hjerpe is hurt. But the potential exists for him to be at least a great bullpen arm. Someone will take him given that fact. I don’t see a world where Baez and Bernal aren’t added and Mautz pitched too well down the stretch where someone would surely add him as a lefty reliever in their MLB pen if he’s not taken.
Several others worth considering:
1. Blaze Jordan – Blaze had an incredible season. He was one of minor league baseball’s better players – especially before he came to Memphis where he initially struggled. But he’s a 1B/3B bench player right now who may or may not hit at all in the big leagues. Is that worth protecting? Not sure, but I’m putting him as the #1 alternate.
2. Pete Hansen – Pete had a very good year at Springfield. He’s a starting pitcher with good control and left handed. He’s maybe a touch old for the age level, but certainly still young enough yet to be considered a prospect. He could easily be stashed in a bullpen. I happen to think he would likely be terrible right now in the big leagues if he were taken. But, someone could let him be terrible knowing that there’s a chance they are stealing a potential future lefty starter.
3. Hancel Rincon – Hancel got hurt about the 3/4 mark of the season. He was having an excellent year and had he kept it up, I think he would have been protected for sure. I don’t know much about his injury. I think that’s a big factor here on whether he gets protected or not. The other problem for the Cardinals is if they don’t add him to the 40-man roster, he would be a minor league free agent and go wherever he wants. Again, I think this one mostly comes down to his injury and the time it will take to recover and what the feeling is on where his effectiveness will initially be when he recovers.
4. Max Rajcic – He’s an innings workhorse, but they typically aren’t real effective innings. He’s still relatively young and pitched most of the season in AAA. But he never dominated AA. And he’s right-handed, which makes him a little less useful. I don’t think he gets protected and I doubt he gets taken.
5. Austin Love – He’s been converted to a reliever after a few injury-ridden seasons and finished at AA. He’s a bit old now with a lot of injury history. But he did have a good year. Jumping to the majors would be a large step though. I doubt he gets protected and my guess is that he would not get taken.
6. Cade Winquest – He had a successful season in High A and AA. The results aren’t always there, but the stuff always gets rave reviews. He would likely be terrible in the majors if selected, but someone could try to stash him for his longer-term potential. I doubt he is protected and I doubt he gets taken.